Thursday, 14 January 2010

See Il Mattino for news of an ancient statue seized by the Carabinieri in the Fuorigrotta district of Naples. The statue - which it is claimed was probably part of a monument commemorating an Antonine emperor - had been on display in the garden of a condominium since the building had been constructed in the 1930s. It is thought that the statue was found during the construction work and was left in situ (kind of!). The carabinieri uncovered plans to steal the statue and sell it during a wider investigation into the illegal antiquities market - and moved in to grab it before the thieves. The statue has been taken to the Naples Museum for restoration, and will probably go on display there in the future.